The rise of veganism is pretty hard to avoid. It is everywhere and is raved about and practised by so many celebrities and influencers. There are also loads of amazing benefits to leading a vegan lifestyle, from health benefits to helping the environment, which make veganism so appealing. But becoming vegan is a massive lifestyle change and a pretty big deal. So, if you are thinking of making the switch, it is important that you do it in a healthy manner that will reduce your chance of you falling off the vegan wagon, but don’t worry, there is a certain knack to it. Here are our 6 top tips on making the switch to veganism so much easier and ensuring that you stick at it.
The most important thing that you should do before committing to a vegan lifestyle is to do your research so that you know what exactly you are getting yourself into. First, you need to research what exactly being vegan entails so that you can really consider whether a vegan life is for you. You need to consider whether you will be able to supplement the vitamins and minerals lost through animal products into your diet through tablets or other plant-based foods so that you don’t become deficient in certain vitamins such as B12 or vitamin D.
Who doesn’t visit Instagram more than 5 times a day?! If you don’t, then I salute you. But if you are an Insta addict like myself, why not use it for some good and follow some amazing vegan Instagram accounts to inspire and motivate you to cook new and delicious vegan meals. A few of our favourites are @veganfoodspace and @veganbowls which have delicious and nutritious recipes full of vegan-suitable ingredients. Trust me, after seeing other people’s amazing vegan recipes, you’ll feel inspired to cook your own. This will definitely help you switch to veganism.
Another great way to help you easily make the switch to veganism and ensure that you don’t get bored and give up on your new lifestyle is to invest in a few amazing vegan cookbooks. Flicking through new cookbooks will inspire you to get creative and explore new recipes with different ingredients, spices and textures. You might even realise that you actually quite like tofu! A few great ones are Eat Smart by Niomi Smart and The Oh She Glows Cookbook by Angela Liddon. After flicking through these you will realise that vegan meals don’t have to consist of mere kale and quinoa and that vegan cooking can be super tasty and exciting.
One of the main reasons people don’t follow through with their vegan diets or are repelled by veganism in the first place is because they think that they will have to boycott their favourite recipes such as spag bol or bangers and mash. Trust me, this doesn’t have to be the case. In fact, one of the best ways for people to ease themselves into veganism is to create their favourite recipes using vegan ingredients instead of meat or dairy products.
For example, you can get quorn veggie sausages to have with your mashed potatoes instead or pork sausages or simply replace your beef steak with a cauliflower steak the next time you want a meaty treat. Admittedly you might be unimpressed at first as you have your favourites for a reason, but experiment for a while longer and you’ll find yourself finding new and healthier favourite dishes that will leave you feeling amazing. You can be sure this will help you switch to veganism.
If you are a Nando’s lover (who isn’t?) and cutting out meat is your biggest worry about going vegan, start with red meat. Red meat is the unhealthiest of all the meats and less frequently consumed than chicken, so it should be one of the easiest meats to cut out. Once you haven’t eaten red meat in 2 weeks, slowly move to other meats that you don’t eat as much and leave the hardest one until last. Hopefully by then you will be confident that you have the strength to cut ingredients out of your diet and this should make the switch a little easier.
One of the most important tips for going vegan is to be easy on yourself. Switching to veganism is a massive change and your body needs to adjust to your new diet choice, so it is best to ease yourself in and take your time by cutting out animal products one at a time. Also, if you fall of the wagon, do not immediately assume that it is because veganism isn’t for you. It was just a mistake and mistakes happen, you’re only human! Just start again and don’t be too concerned about the odd hiccup.
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